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Holloway challenges Hungbo to ease Swindon Town reliance on Drinan
By Swindon Now Editorial Team · Published
Swindon Town manager Ian Holloway is seeking more contributions from across his squad to reduce the team's over-reliance on top scorer Aaron Drinan.
Swindon Town manager Ian Holloway has issued a clear call for his attacking players to share the burden as the club looks to reduce its heavy reliance on striker Aaron Drinan. Despite Drinan demonstrating elite consistency at League Two level with eight goals in 13 appearances this season, the lack of output from other areas of the pitch has become a significant tactical concern.
Drinan, who scored 28 goals last season, remains the focal point of the Swindon attack. However, with no other player netting more than once across all competitions, Holloway acknowledges that the team's current attacking structure must become more diverse to remain competitive. Players including Paul Glatzel, Ollie Clarke, Ben Middlemas, Louis Millard, Antwoine Hackford, Joseph Hungbo, Stephan Negru and Mitch Clark have all provided single-goal contributions, but none have yet established themselves as a secondary scoring threat.
In response to this, Holloway has been experimenting with tactical shifts over the last three games. The manager has moved towards a system incorporating wing-backs and a narrower attacking trio positioned behind Drinan. Matty Virtue and Joe Snowdon have occupied these roles in recent outings, while Hungbo has also been utilised in more central attacking positions.
Holloway is particularly keen to see Joseph Hungbo rise to the challenge. The manager highlighted the Wigan Athletic loanee's ability to beat opponents, noting that the player's potential has been hampered by recurring knee issues which limited his availability to just 339 minutes of league action following a missed pre-season.
"We need to be clinical, and we need to get more goals; we need to create more opportunities; we need to create more chances, get more people scoring because we can't rely on Drinan," Holloway said. "That is why we are coming up with different things to make sure that happens."
With injuries affecting the squad, specifically the absence of Anthony Munda and Ollie Clarke, further tactical adjustments are likely. Holloway suggested that Virtue could be deployed in a deeper role, potentially clearing the way for Hungbo to feature more prominently within the front three as the team prepares for its next league challenges.
Source: Swindon Advertiser - Lifestyle · View original